


two sugars

by imposterhuman



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Coffee Addict Tony Stark, Established Relationship, Fluff, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark at MIT, M/M, MIT Era, No Angst, Rhodey Is a Good Bro, Rhodey is a little shit, Tony Stark Needs Sleep, Tony has a heart, Young Rhodey, Young Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-24
Updated: 2019-10-24
Packaged: 2021-01-02 03:48:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21155111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imposterhuman/pseuds/imposterhuman
Summary: Tony was pretty sure he was dying. His head was spinning, eyelids drooping, and his every limb felt like it was weighed down with rocks.“Coffee,” he hissed weakly, making grabby hands into the empty air.“Tones?” Rhodey’s voice called out as the door to the lab opened. “You still in here?”





	two sugars

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sophietris](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sophietris/gifts).

> for sophietris, who prompted "rhodey and tony say i love you"
> 
> hope you like it!!

Tony was pretty sure he was dying. His head was spinning, eyelids drooping, and his every limb felt like it was weighed down with rocks.

“Coffee,” he hissed weakly, making grabby hands into the empty air. He’d been up for 72 hours straight and his coffee machine had broken somewhere around hour 53. The tiredness and caffeine withdrawal was hitting him hard, but at least his project was finished.

DUM-E beeped sadly, wheeling over another cup of motor oil. Tony seriously considered drinking it for a moment, if only because it looked like coffee to his addled mind. He buried his head in his hands with a groan; he could take a nap soon, but first, he needed the biggest cup of coffee he could find.Unfortunately, though, that required moving, and Tony was pretty sure he’d rather just die. 

“Tones?” Rhodey’s voice called out as the door to the lab opened. “You still in here?”

Tony perked up minutely. “Coffee,” he repeated with a rasp. It had been a while since he spoke. “Coffee?”

“Ah, so we’ve passed hour 70,” Rhodey said sagely. After hour 70, Tony’s vocabulary shrank to two words: _ coffee _ and _ no _. “Don’t you think you need to go to sleep instead of having caffeine?”

Tony gave him the stink eye. “No,” he shook his head emphatically. “_ Coffee _.”

“No coffee?” teased Rhodey. He grinned fondly, producing a cup from behind his back. “Well, if you insist.” Tony made grabby hands until Rhodey held it out to him. “Two sugars, right?”

The exhausted engineer drained the cup in record time, scalding his mouth without regrets. “Rhodey,” he said seriously and poured the dregs in his mouth. “Honey Bear, Sour Patch, Platypus. I love you.”

His words caught up to him slower than usual; he blamed the sleep deprivation. Tony flushed deeply. Even though they’d been dating for a few months, they’d never said the words to each other, and Tony was worried he’d screwed everything up. His mouth opened and closed unattractively, like a fish.

Luckily, Rhodey took pity on him, shooting him a dazzling smile. “Love you, too, Tones,” he said, leaning in for a quick kiss. “Even though you’re just saying it because I bring you coffee.”

“That’s not true!” Tony protested, the buzz of caffeine and indignation in his system giving him energy. “I love your dorky smile, the way you always laugh at my shitty science jokes, and how you don’t mind if I go all mad scientist. Yes, the coffee is a perk, but I love you, regardless, you assho- oh my god.” Tony broke off as Rhodey burst into cackling laughter. It was a full-on belly laugh, the kind that left him doubled over and wheezing for breath. “You tricked me! I’ve been had!”

“Just a little,” Rhodey admitted. Mischief twinkled in his eyes. “But it’s okay, because I love you even though you’re gullible.”

“Only when I’m sleep deprived,” complained Tony, pretending like he wasn’t all melty and gooey on the inside from Rhodey’s casual declaration. “You’re taking advantage of that, you, mean, mean, um…”

“Don’t strain yourself,” Rhodey brushed a curl back from his face, his tenderness a contrast to his fondly mocking tone. “You’ll get there.”

Tony glared. “Meanie,” he finished with a wide yawn. 

“C’mon, Tones,” Rhodey decided, looking at the dark circles under Tony’s eyes and making an executive decision. “Let’s go back to our dorm; you need to sleep for a couple of days.”

“I could just drink more coffee,” offered Tony. He valiantly tried to keep his eyes open, but he was 64% certain that Rhodey was going to end up carrying him back to their dorm.

“Veto,” Rhodey said quickly. Gently, he lifted Tony’s small frame into his arms. “You need sleep, Tones.”

Tony sunk into his arms and into sleep. “Love you,” he murmured, surrendering to the wave of tiredness. 

Rhodey’s answering rumble warmed him to his bones. “Love you more.”

**Author's Note:**

> comments and kudos make me happy!! im still accepting prompts for all ships, but ironhusbands especially, either here or on my tumblr! fills probably wont start until after my ed date for college apps, but ill put them on my list
> 
> come talk to me on tumblr [@imposter-human](https://imposter-human.tumblr.com/)


End file.
